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News from |
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Michael D. Chason Director of Public
Relations ABAC 30, 2802 Moore Hwy |
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For IMMEDIATE
Release July 26,
2010
ABAC Total
Economic Impact Over $251 Million
TIFTON—The total economic impact of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural
College on Tifton and the surrounding area reached an all time high of
$251,799,738 during the 2009 year, according to a new study commissioned by the
Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.
Released
by the University of Georgia’s Selig Center for Economic Growth, the study
showed the 35 public colleges and universities in the System have a $12.7
billion economic impact on Georgia.
ABAC
President David Bridges said the total impact of the college has more than
doubled since 2001.
“When
you look at the construction on our campus in the last seven years, you can see
why the numbers have gone up significantly,” Bridges said. “Since that time,
we have opened a new Ag Sciences building, a new Health Sciences building, two
housing complexes that are filled with over 1,300 students, and now we are
working on the historic front of campus project.”
ABAC
received an allocation of $6 million in the FY 2009 budget to begin work on the
mammoth project, which will completely restore Tift Hall, Herring Hall, and
Lewis Hall, the three original buildings on the campus when it opened as the
Second District A&M School on Feb. 20, 1908. The project will continue with
$4.75 million toward the rehabilitation of the ABAC front campus in the FY2011
budget.
ABAC
had an enrollment in the 2009 fall semester of 3,326 students from 10
countries, 12 other states, and 154 Georgia counties. Those students certainly boosted the Tifton
and south Georgia economy.
Dr. Jeff Gibbs, Dean of the ABAC School of
Business, analyzed the Selig Center report and found additional impact that
actually added to the results.
Gibbs
said a total of 1,508 jobs in the Tifton area, both on campus and off campus,
can be attributed to ABAC.
“The
college had 373 on-campus jobs, and the multiplier effect created another 881
jobs in the area,” Gibbs said. “Additionally, the capital outlay impact
of the college (construction and renovation) accounted for another 254
jobs.
“These
are stable, value-added jobs. Most have incomes appropriate for different
educational levels attached to them that contribute to the community as a
whole.”
With
more students living on campus than ever before, Bridges said student
expenditures are up in the community. About 1,300 students live on campus in the
ABAC Place apartments and ABAC Lakeside.
“We
bring out-of-region students to live on the campus,” Bridges said. “That
means they go to the local eating establishments, they visit the stores, and
when they go back home, they fill up their gas tanks before they leave.
That has to have an impact.”
Bridges
said with the college’s bachelor’s degree programs, students will live in
Tifton longer and might even become residents here.
“A
few students who stay here for two years might one day come back and live in
Tifton,” Bridges said. “But when you have students here for four or five
years, they get to really experience the quality of life we have here.
When they’re ready to start a career, they are more likely to stay right here
in south Georgia.”
As
an economist, Gibbs understands the dollars and cents impact of ABAC. But
he also knows there are many other ways that the college touches the community.
“ABAC
adds to the volunteer pool in the community in a big way,” Gibbs said.
“You have people serving on city committees, private boards, providing
leadership in churches, helping out with events like Relay For
Life and a lot of other organizations.
“Having
ABAC and its employees here makes this a better place to live. Look at
the Arts Connection and all the programs it offers. Look at the Love
Affair every May.”
Gibbs
also pointed out the Educational Outreach office at ABAC that sponsors
continuing education classes for the community. Last year, it was third
among all 35 units of the University System in the number of classes offered.
The
classes attract students who drive to Tifton from smaller communities and make
several purchases before they return home.
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